The Golden Age of Fandom

My son did something on Friday night that almost had me ask him what he'd done with the real Alex. He's always been indifferent to antipathetic about superhero movies, but on Friday night, he wanted to see Black Panther. We ended up getting the digital version on Amazon. Now we're discussing whether to go straight to Infinity War or start at the beginning with Iron Man. (We're going to skip to Infinity War.) You may remember that earlier this year I had to see those movies by myself in the theater because my son didn't want to go, so while I'm not a big Marvel fan myself, I am glad that he's expanding his fandoms. Hopefully this doesn't lead to him abandoning Star Wars; it's become a big part of our family by now.

When I Google "The Golden Age of Fandom," the top hits are all about comics or movies, not about stages in a person's life. I'm not sure if it's still true that the preteen years are the peak season for fandom. If anything, adulthood and a steady income allow one to buy collectibles on a whim and attend conventions. Parenthood certainly leads to a decline in disposable income, but if a child becomes interested in superheroes, Disney, Star Wars, Harry Potter, or any other fantasy world, they may rekindle a parent's interest or develop something new.

As a girl, I read all sorts of books, but I particularly remember reading Andre Norton's work along with the Oz series and other fantasy books. I didn't become heavily invested into science fiction/fantasy until my late teens/early twenties. As a middle-aged mom, I don't have the time or energy to feel intensely about a particular fandom, but I still care about the field. I think too that as a reader who follows her own interests, not just the best-sellers, I find less of a fandom for some of my favorite series. I can enjoy them even if I don't always find fellow fans to share them with.

Anyway, when did you enter fandom, and what brought you into it? Feel free to share in the comments.